Ministry of Land Launches Logistics Facility Fire Safety Task Force... Comprehensive Overhaul of Safety Standards

Significantly Strengthening Management and Supervision Systems

In response to the recent fire at the Coupang logistics center in Incheon, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport has launched a comprehensive overhaul of fire safety standards for logistics warehouses, working in collaboration with relevant ministries.

On the 20th, a part of the Coupang logistics center building in Seoknam-dong, Seohae District, Incheon, which has been on fire for three days, is charred black. Photo by Yonhap News

On the 20th, the Ministry announced that an inception meeting of the "Task Force for Improving Fire Safety Regulations at Logistics Facilities" was held, presided over by the Director General for Transportation and Logistics. The meeting was attended by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, the National Fire Agency, the Korea Institute of Civil Engineering and Building Technology, private experts in architecture, fire safety, and disaster prevention, as well as representatives from the logistics industry.

Moving forward, the Task Force plans to analyze the causes of logistics facility fires and conduct a thorough review of current fire safety management regulations for logistics centers—from the design phase to operation and maintenance. The Task Force will also collect on-site feedback to develop fundamental improvement measures.

Key agenda items include reviewing the appropriateness of current regulations and fire safety standards for logistics facilities, improving architectural and fire safety criteria that reflect the unique characteristics of such facilities, reinforcing management and supervision systems for fire safety at logistics centers, and ensuring that fire safety systems are installed and operated with emergency response and evacuation in mind.

The Logistics Policy Director at the Ministry will serve as the head of the Task Force, which will be divided into three subcommittees: operation and management, architecture, and fire/disaster prevention.

Park Jae-soon, Director General for Transportation and Logistics at the Ministry, stated, "Recently, logistics facilities have become larger and taller, while storing and handling a wider variety of goods, leading to increased fire risks. We will do our utmost to develop effective safety management measures that fully reflect on-site perspectives and ensure the public can feel secure."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.